Serendip
Food, Energy and Body Weight
High schoolers learn why humans need calories, how they control weight with food choices, and the impact of exercise on energy. Scholars then apply their understanding to a case study of lunch choices and exercise.
Energy for Keeps
The Energy Times
Extra! Extra! Read all about past and present energy use in a classroom-made historical newspaper. Useful as a cross-curricular assignment between science, history, and language arts, the project is sure to get young journalists...
It's About Time
Environmental Impacts and Energy Consumption
As scientists prove environmental impacts of using coal as an energy resource, do you think Santa regrets giving out so much of it? Through a demonstration of acid rain, pupils learn what makes it, where it occurs, the impact of it, and...
NASA
Photons in the Radiative Zone: Which Way Is Out? An A-Maz-ing Model
Can you move like a photon? Young scholars use a maze to reproduce the straight line motion of a photon. The second in a six-part series of lessons on the sun has learners measure angle of incidence and refraction to determine the path...
Curated OER
Creating Historians: Send Them Out
Get teenagers out of the classroom in the pursuit of history; part three of a series on approaching social studies as a group of historians.
US Energy Information Administration
Primary Activity: Energy and Machines
Conservation kids take this printable home, draw a picture of their bedrooms, then cut out and paste pictures into the drawing to show what energy-using appliances are present. This assignment is a very practical way to wrap up a unit on...
Curated OER
Apple Energy
Ninth graders evaluate the energy associated with the production of five different forms of apple products. They develop a poster to advertise one of the five apple products to the class. Students provide additional examples of consumer...
Curated OER
Energy Conservation Lesson 1: Fossil Fuels and the Ticking Clock
Students explore energy production by participating in a class discussion. In this renewable energy instructional activity, students discuss the differences between solar, coal, wind and fossil fuel energy sources and why some are better...
Curated OER
Chilling Out
Students determine the breakdown of worldwide energy consumption by various sources. After reading an article, they examine recent research in the area of alternative energy sources. Using the internet, they research the forms of...
Curated OER
Energy Alternatives and Conservation
In this energy alternatives and conservation worksheet, students research the topic, answer 3 questions, then complete a 4 step plan to create a print or digital project. This page has numerous links to web resources.
Curated OER
Where's the Energy
Students research energy conversions. For this energy lesson, students describe the basic operation of a steam engine. They explain the energy conversions in the steam engine's operation.
Curated OER
Energy Transformations
Young scholars investigate energy transformation in the form of wind energy. They read a handout, answer questions, identify points in an energy system where transformations occur, and build a wind turbine.
Curated OER
Energy Divide
Fourth graders, after viewing a video on "The Future" Fossil Fuel grade, participate in an energy consumption simulation game in order to analyze how consumption, population, and choice of resource affect the availability of future...
Curated OER
Changing Energy: Landforms and Dance
Third graders choreograph a dance to represent the changes in nature. For this dance and nature lesson plan, 3rd graders use sharp quick movements to demonstrate changes.
Pingry School
Scientific Notation and Calculations – Energies, Frequencies, and Wavelengths of Photons
The calculator has an interesting way of displaying numbers in scientific notation, but don't let that confuse your pupils! A lesson designed to give learners practice with scientific notation and calculators provides several practice...
Curated OER
An Air-Powered Car
Youngsters read text about an environmentally-friendly car. They try to figure out the meaning of the vocabulary in the text and discuss issues related to alternative energy sources. This thoughtful, well-designed plan has all the...
Curated OER
An Environmental Puzzle: The Carbon Cycle
Middle school science stars examine fuels and energy with a variety of activities. They begin with a KWL chart, read an informative passage, and then complete a puzzle. The puzzle itself is included. Cleverly, each piece corresponds to a...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Tour de Texas
Teams of Texas tourists gather into groups to analyze what they can do with $50 worth of an alternative fuel. They write checks, keep a balance sheet, and map out their sight-seeing route taking into consideration the location of...
American Chemical Society
Matter on the Move
Start this mini unit on matter out by demonstrating how food coloring behaves when placed in cold and in hot water. Then have the class experiment with warm water and soap film. Pupils will learn that an increase in thermal energy also...
Curated OER
Changing Planet: Black Carbon - a Dusty Situation
Introduce your young meteorologists to black carbon produced by the burning of fossil fuels by showing the video, "Changing Planet: Black Carbon." Viewers discover that deposition of this carbon on polar ice impacts the absorption of...
Curated OER
Transportation Fuels: What Car Will You Drive?
How many different types of biofuels are out there? Seventh graders watch a series of videos and participate in a series of activities in order to better understand all the transportation options available. They consider what type of car...
US Department of Energy
Draft-O-Meter
Help your class improve the energy efficiency of their homes with the draft-o-meter. Simply tape a sheet of plastic wrap to a pencil and use it to observe any air leaking through windows, doorways, and other locations around the house....
Carnegie Mellon University
Renewables Workshop
Youngsters examine resource maps to find out which states are using solar and wind power and discuss as a class various other renewable energy sources. They use a provided data table to record pros and cons to each technology, build and...
Curated OER
Earthquakes: Third Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Introduce third graders to energy waves with a hands-on geology activity, in which they answer questions and compare seismograms in the San Francisco Bay area. After a demonstration that shows how bigger waves indicate a high-intensity...